ABSTRACT
Rural areas provide sources for the socialist imagination of romance in China but have become an unromantic space in post-socialist Chinese television dramas. The series Rural Romantic Love Stories (broadcast since 2006), however, has a high viewership and is the longest-running drama series in Chinese television history. This chapter examines the ways in which this television series tells romantic love stories that deviate from the common perception of romance among Chinese and other audiences by reinforcing gender norms and authenticating Chineseness.
